Since the earlier thread on this topic is now 10 pages, I thought I'd start over again. My recently read include:

Scandal Wears Satin by Loretta Chase: Not my favorite book of hers but still rates above 90% of the rest of the stuff out there. Chase is a master at creating characters who are smart and funny, even the ones who are billed as capable of holding only one thought in their brains at a time (for Harry, it is his focus on getting Sophy undressed). Sometimes I want my romances gritty but sometimes I just want the fairy tale, and this one fit the bill in a very satisfying way. Even if earl marrying dressmaker is not entirely realistic, you can still believe that it could just possibly happen -- Sophy is, after all, a product of two aristocratic (if down on their luck) families.

His Lordship's Reward by Carola Dunn: This is an older trad Regency and a sequel to Miss Jacobsen's Journey. Unfortunately, I did not find it nearly as interesting as the prior book. Nothing particularly wrong with it, but I was a bit bored. Felix Roworth is a poor aristocrat who works for Nathan Rothschild. He shares lodgings in Brussels with Fanny and Frank Ingram, brother and sister, and Anita, a 3 y.o. orphan who is their ward. Frank is a soldier and Fanny has followed the drum her whole life, so while Felix likes her he has set his matrimonial sights on an earl's daughter who he feels is more appropriate to his own station. Perhaps I would have liked the book better if I felt Anita were more realistic, but she is the dreaded plot moppet and seems both too old and too young for her age.

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford: Not a romance although there is a love story in it. It is the 1980s and Henry, a Chinese American in his 50s, thinks back to 1942, when he was 12 and met Keiko, a 12 y.o. Japanese-American girl in Seattle. The book is in part about WWII and the racism that led to the evacuation of the Japanese-Americans to internment camps, but it is also about young love that endures and about families. Not a great book but an interesting one. There were times I wanted to shake Henry because he was so passive, but I'd have to remind myself how young he was.

The Woman in Black by Susan Hill: Didn't see the recent movie based on this but saw the book in my library and decided to read it. Decently written, but I did not find it nearly as scary as it was billed. The story was just sad.

The Other Guy's Bride by Connie Brockway
I didn't like this quite as much as Dabney did in her review, but I thought it was fun and lighthearted. Brockway manages to create both major and minor characters who have depth, so that even those who appear for relatively few pages still come alive, and, as Dabney notes, she places them in vividly described settings that become an integral part of the story. I couldn't quite connect with Ginesse, but I liked Jim because I loved the opening: "'Join the Foreign Legion,' the dirt-and blood-stained young man muttered, jamming a cartridge into his rifle's magazine. 'If you die, that'll make her sorry, by God.' He dug another cartridge out from the bottom of his kit, ramming it alongside its fellow. 'Only one problem: you'll be dead a lot longer than she'll be sorry.'"

The Things That Matter by Edward Mendelson
This is a book of essays where Mendelson looks at 7 novels (all written by women) and discusses what they say about the stages of life. The books he chooses include Frankenstein (birth), Wuthering Heights (childhood), Jane Eyre (growth), Middlemarch (marriage), Mrs. Dalloway (love), To the Lighthouse (parenthood), and Between the Acts (the future). While I loved some of what he had to say, disagreed with some, and was occasionally mystified, I liked very much that he took these books and the issues and questions they present quite seriously. These are exactly the issues that we find in romance -- love and marriage, as well as what comes before and after -- but they are all too often dismissed by the general literary community precisely because they are found in romances.

I've been glomming Karin Slaughter's Will Trent books. I was afraid to read her because of her very controversial move regarding a character in her Grant County series, but her writing is so good, and I was intrigued by Tee's comments about Will Trent. And OMG, I love them so hard. I've read them out of order--started with the one where he and Sarah first start sparking, and then was curious about how his relationship with Angie started out so I'm on Fractured now. I'm going to be sad when I'm caught up._________________Manda Collins

I've been glomming Karin Slaughter's Will Trent books. I was afraid to read her because of her very controversial move regarding a character in her Grant County series, but her writing is so good, and I was intrigued by Tee's comments about Will Trent. And OMG, I love them so hard.

Karin Slaughter's writing is good, isn't it, Manda? Too good to stay away from her only because of a decision she made early on in one of her series that displeased so many people. But it's done and I think she's vindicated herself in merging the two series and their characters somewhat. No matter. I believe Slaughter has created a fascinating character in Will Trent and he never ceases to amaze and irritate me all at the same time. He is as complex as he is obvious. I'm glad that you're enjoying him and everyone as you back through the series.

The Anatomist's Apprentice: A Dr. Thomas Silkstone Mystery by Tessa Harris- I thought I'd try this as it showed up in recommended for me whenever I logged onto Amazon. Not surprisingly, there are some passages that aren't for the weak-stomached reader. I really didn't have a problem w/that aspect as I did w/the fact that everybody seemed to be in love with the same person! I can't stand that angle. The writing itself was well done, but I don't know if I'll be back for another round. We'll see.

Heart of Brass: A Novel of the Clockwork Agents by Kate Cross- I picked this up in a hurry at B&N, thinking it was another historical mystery series. It's a steampunk series. I'd never read anything from that genre so I thought I'd give it a try. It does have a romance front and center that was very interesting, but the steampunk angle was a little much for me. It seemed like everytime there was a problem, bam! Here comes some gadget or thingymajig that'll help us read someone's mind, stun them, etc. I don't know about that...although, I will say that the book did lead me to read up on other steampunk novels. I might try another just to see what other authors have to offer.

I'm currently reading Deadly Engagement by Lucinda Brant, another rec from Amazon. It's another historical mystery series, I saw there was a thread on it from a few months ago. I'm finding that I really prefer the character growth of a series with the same characters._________________Why put off til tomorrow what you can put off until next week?

I've been glomming Karin Slaughter's Will Trent books. I was afraid to read her because of her very controversial move regarding a character in her Grant County series, but her writing is so good, and I was intrigued by Tee's comments about Will Trent. And OMG, I love them so hard.

Karin Slaughter's writing is good, isn't it, Manda? Too good to stay away from her only because of a decision she made early on in one of her series that displeased so many people. But it's done and I think she's vindicated herself in merging the two series and their characters somewhat. No matter. I believe Slaughter has created a fascinating character in Will Trent and he never ceases to amaze and irritate me all at the same time. He is as complex as he is obvious. I'm glad that you're enjoying him and everyone as you back through the series.

Definitely too good to stay away from, Tee. I love Will and Sarah together, too. I am worried though (as ever) about Angie. She is not going to let them have their HEA, I fear. But it's kind of exciting knowing she might jump out at them any moment._________________Manda Collins

I am worried though (as ever) about Angie. She is not going to let them have their HEA, I fear. But it's kind of exciting knowing she might jump out at them any moment.

Angie's quite the character, too. I suspect she's in self-destruct mode or soon will be. There's a sad reality to her life, but for all that she celebrates her freedom and does as she desires, no matter who she upsets, she's not willing to grant those same freedoms to Will. It'll be interesting to see how Slaughter handles this.

This is another book in The Chesapeake Diaries series and I loved it. A little on the long side, and some information could have been abbreviated, but the story worked for me and I am really enjoying this series. When authors continue to write interesting stories that keep me engaged, I would never mind a series continuing. So far, so good in this one.

I've been glomming Karin Slaughter's Will Trent books. I was afraid to read her because of her very controversial move regarding a character in her Grant County series, but her writing is so good, and I was intrigued by Tee's comments about Will Trent. And OMG, I love them so hard.

Karin Slaughter's writing is good, isn't it, Manda? Too good to stay away from her only because of a decision she made early on in one of her series that displeased so many people. But it's done and I think she's vindicated herself in merging the two series and their characters somewhat. No matter. I believe Slaughter has created a fascinating character in Will Trent and he never ceases to amaze and irritate me all at the same time. He is as complex as he is obvious. I'm glad that you're enjoying him and everyone as you back through the series.

As an avid mystery reader, I "discovered" Karin Slaughter w/ her first book and thought she was as good a writer as any I had found. But I was pretty heavily invested in the characters and devastated by that choice she made. I've been thinking lately about going back and pretending that it's a new series. Where should I start? I think I've read maybe two or three early Will Trent books (Sara may have been mentioned). I don't want to revisit the earlier part of her series; I'd rather come in late on the Will/Sara stuff than go through any of that.

I've been glomming Karin Slaughter's Will Trent books. I was afraid to read her because of her very controversial move regarding a character in her Grant County series, but her writing is so good, and I was intrigued by Tee's comments about Will Trent. And OMG, I love them so hard.

Karin Slaughter's writing is good, isn't it, Manda? Too good to stay away from her only because of a decision she made early on in one of her series that displeased so many people. But it's done and I think she's vindicated herself in merging the two series and their characters somewhat. No matter. I believe Slaughter has created a fascinating character in Will Trent and he never ceases to amaze and irritate me all at the same time. He is as complex as he is obvious. I'm glad that you're enjoying him and everyone as you back through the series.

As an avid mystery reader, I "discovered" Karin Slaughter w/ her first book and thought she was as good a writer as any I had found. But I was pretty heavily invested in the characters and devastated by that choice she made. I've been thinking lately about going back and pretending that it's a new series. Where should I start? I think I've read maybe two or three early Will Trent books (Sara may have been mentioned). I don't want to revisit the earlier part of her series; I'd rather come in late on the Will/Sara stuff than go through any of that.

I started with BROKEN, which takes place about six years after the "incident" that you spoke of that shook up Grant County. It has some important interaction between Sarah and Will, but if you don't want to dwell on what happened before then you should probably start with FALLEN, which is the one where the real relationship between them develops. It takes place solely in Atlanta and in that GBI/APD world.

I'm reading these partly for the mystery and partly for the relationship. I'm going to be crushed if she does anything drastic to either Sarah or Will. But it won't be like I wasn't warned. :/_________________Manda Collins

The Fault In Our Stars by John Green. About a group of teenagers living with cancer. When the author sticks with the emotional connections of the characters the book is amazing, but when he diverts to the secondary plot, it lags. Definitely a tear jerker. I'd give it a B.

(Re HEAreader's request on Karin Slaughter.) I started with BROKEN, which takes place about six years after the "incident" that you spoke of that shook up Grant County. It has some important interaction between Sarah and Will, but if you don't want to dwell on what happened before then you should probably start with FALLEN, which is the one where the real relationship between them develops. It takes place solely in Atlanta and in that GBI/APD world.

Thank you, Manda, for answering that question for HEAreader. I read the books as they were issued, so I would have had to go back to the list and reacquaint myself with the stories to figure it out for her (bad recall on titles ). Since you're just coming off of them, the titles and stories are much more fresh in your mind.

And, Manda, be positive about how Slaughter will handle Will and Sarah. Can't tell what an author will do, that's for sure, but I think she said something so dramatic won't happen with the main characters again in her books. We'll see. I'm past it anyways and very much into the present relationship. And the author captains the ship, so to speak.

Good luck to the both of you. I really wish you happy reading as well as suspenseful. Karin Slaughter is a very gifted writer who, IMO, is capable of delivering both of these elements simultaneously.